Something Precious
by TCGeek
Summary: Sometimes, we may not be able to be the ones in the spotlight, the ones who ultimately saved them... but what matters most is that they were given the gift of another day. Complete
1. Panic

This is a short story I thought of while putting the finishing touches on the first chapter of my new mushy fluffy Derek and Angie story... aww. I am a writing fiend lately! (not so much so as ITB... eh)

Its just another one of those "How did this come to happen" stories... no romance this time, just the facts. ENJOY!

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**Panic.**

"Tyler, watch my dive!"

It was a hot, sunny, July afternoon, and Tyler Chase had taken his little sister Amy for a swim.

"I'm watching, go ahead!" he said, eyes still closed, basking in the sun.

"Tyleeerrrrrrr!!! You're not watching! Watch my dive!"

Tyler lifted his head up slightly off the white plastic chair, shielding his eyes with his right hand. He watched as Amy's frustrated look turned to a smile, as she ran to the foot of the diving board and bounced high into the air, before plummeting straight down into the chlorinated water. By the time she had broken through the surface, Tyler had already returned his head back to its previous resting position, a small smile rested upon his face.

The two had been at their neighborhood pool for a little over two hours now, and Amy was still not sick of diving yet. It was the same process every time: she would bug him to watch, he would pretend to, she would see that and bug him more, he would pay attention while she dove, and then she would swim out of the pool giggling, and then come and drip the cold water all over him for being boring and laying out in the sun, instead of joining her for a swim. He jumped in occasionally, picking splashing fights with her and catapulting her sixty pound frame into the air, only to watch her kerplunk in the deep end, laughing with joy as she rose to the surface. Today, however, was his day off from Trinity hospital, and he wanted to enjoy relaxing in the sun.

Ready for a cool down, he sat up slowly, stretching his arms out all the way, before pulling them behind his head and letting out a giant yawn. He stood up, turning his attention to the pool. Amy was gone.

"Huh…" he said to himself, slightly confused. Tyler thought about it for a minute, before shrugging it off – although there was nobody else at the pool at the current moment, Amy always ended up spotting someone on the playground not far away, and would sometimes disappear to go play with someone more fun than her big brother.

He sat upright, turning his attention to the playground. It too, was deserted, the absence of his little sister's laughter creating a huge void which made him uneasy inside. Tyler turned his attention back to the pool, panicking as he realized that the silence was due to the fact that Amy was in fact right in front of him... motionless on the bottom of the pool.

"Oh, GOD!"

In a split second, Tyler was out of the chair, and into the pool like a rocket, head first. He swam towards the bottom of the ten foot deep water, thrashing his whole body violently to get to her before it was too late. Turning her over onto her back, he could see she was definitely unconscious – this wasn't some sort of unfunny joke, although he secretly hoped it was. Wrapping an arm around her tiny waist, he pulled her frame into his own, and swam furiously to the surface.

Tyler bounded up the ladder, her limp body resting in his grasps as he panicked. He shoved two fingers into the artery on her neck, finding a pulse that was barely present. His straggly blond hair brushed her pale face as he checked her breathing, which was non-existent. Pinching her nose shut, he pulled her head back and opened her mouth, clasping his own around it to try to breathe life into the little girl he loved so much. Four giant breaths later, and she still wasn't breathing on her own. His adrenaline racing, he rolled her onto her side and gave her a few hard whaps on the back, watching as water protruded from her mouth and nose. He laid her flat and tried again, this time, the second breath of life was the one that stirred her back to consciousness. She rolled herself over, coughing violently several times, before she vomited onto the concrete of the pool deck. Tyler checked her over once more. She was crying and gasping for air, her tiny hands clasped onto the fabric of his swimsuit as he sat by her side.

"Tyler!" she said, wheezing before returning to another coughing fit. "It hurts, it hurts real bad!"

"Amy, look at me kiddo… what hurts? Point to it"

Her hands released his trunks, one flew to her chest, and the other to her lower left stomach.

"My stomach hurt so bad after I dove… I couldn't move, I was so scared Tyler!"

He pulled her into a sitting position and up into his lap, wrapping his arms around her shaking body as she cried hysterically.

"Shh, sweetie – its okay, you're alright… I'd never let anything happen to you.."

Tears accumulated in the corners of his own eyes – he couldn't believe how close he had come to losing her..

"Uh oh!" she said, hand flying up to her mouth.

In a swift move, she rolled her top half to the right, vomiting through the cracks of her fingers and onto the deck once more. Amy looked down at the puddle in a panic, before she began to scream louder than he had ever heard before. When she ran out of breath from the previous scream, she began a new one – each one progressively getting more blood curdling.

Tyler jerked himself over to see what the fuss was – she had thrown up plenty of times before, but it never produced this reaction… He saw what she was screaming about, and froze completely in his tracks.

"Oh no… no, no, no…"

Dark red blood stained the pool deck, bringing a splash of color to the dreary grey cement. Amy held out her tiny right hand in front of her, screeching at the fact that it was covered with blood as well. In fact, blood was everywhere. The deck, her hands, spurting out of her mouth at every scream, trickling down her face and neck… this was bad. Real bad.

In one swift move, Tyler stood up and scooped Amy into his arms. He ran over to the chair where he had been laying and grabbed his towel, which he wrapped her in before grabbing his keys and bolting for the car. Something was wrong… very, very wrong.

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Tyler busted through the doors of Trinity Hospital's OR, his barely conscious sister in his grasps. Immediately, his coworkers rushed to his aide, laying the girl on a stretcher before running off down the hallway, Tyler trailing closely behind.

"Chase!" barked Dr. Stannis, his mentor and the surgeon who had trained him all through his residency. "You need to leave this to us – go get dressed, make your calls… come wait outside, we'll be in room four."

"But – she's my sister!" he butted in, visibly shaken.

"This, isn't up for discussion – we need to figure this out, and you don't have a clear head right now. I'll update you as soon as possible…"

The doors swung shut, leaving Tyler on the wrong side of them. All he could do now was wait.

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And wait he did. It had to have been the longest two hours of his life - each passing minute drained his body of the energy he was keeping to try to hold himself together. He felt like screaming -- why didn't he get there in time, why wasn't he paying attention... he could've gotten to her sooner... And now, she was in that room, all alone, scared, sick - and there was nothing he could do to help.

Tyler hung his head down, cradling it in his hands. He took a deep breath inward and released it, his whole body numb from the pain of reliving the trauma. Just as he thought he couldn't wait any more, the door opened and Dr. Stannis stepped out.

Tyler immediately rose to his feet, walking towards the doctor.

"Doctor... how, is she?"

Dr. Stannis looked at Tyler's face, making direct eye contact with him. Tyler stared back at him, noticing that his blue eyes were glazed over with a very grim look - this was not going to be good news.

He outstretched his hand, a file folder in it. Tyler looked at him quizzically before removing it from his grasp. He opened the manilla folder and read the top page. Written in red marker, in all caps, and underlined several times were the words "Positive Chiral Reaction". The young surgeon's gaze diverted from the paper and back up to Dr. Stannis, his eyes searching for an answer that he wasn't sure he wanted to hear.

"Tyler - Amy has GUILT."

"She, has... what? What is 'Guilt'?"

"It stands for Gangliated Utrophin Immuno Latency Toxin. Its a disease that has been floating around in very isolated areas... we know very little about it, and that's why we need your signature on this.."

He held out a piece of paper, the heading, "Transfer/Clinical Study"

Tyler began to panic slightly... none of this was making sense.

"Where are you going to do with her? Please don't tell me you're going to use her as a test subject, because you can just forget me signing this thi---"

"Tyler, calm... down. She's not going to be used as a test subject - we think its in her best interest to be transferred to Caduceus USA."

Tyler shuddered internally. Caduceus was a state-of-the-art hospital that focused on treating and curing otherwise incurable diseases, such as AIDS and other viruses that had broken out over the past two decades or so... They knew their stuff, but sending her there meant that this was something bad. Something, potentially uncurable.

"Do they have a cure yet?"

Dr. Stannis looked at the floor, shuffling his feet. "There's, uh... actually only been a handful of cases so far. They've been doing their best to keep the patients alive until a treatment is found, but with the different strains and all... it progresses too quickly, and all but one of the patients have died so far."

Tyler stumbled backward, almost unable to breathe. This couldn't be happening... not to her, not to his little sister. She was supposed to grow up and be the president of the United States like she wanted - not die at the tender age of seven... He slumped back into the seat which he had previously occupied, tears spilling from his eyes.

"Tyler - I don't want to scare you, but as a doctor, you need to know all the facts... I'm sure everything will be alright - you just have to have faith."

Tyler looked up at him, eyes full of tears.

"Can, I see her?"

The doctor nodded, moving out of the way of the door. Tyler stood up shakily, and walked in, letting it close gently behind him.

* * *

Yes, this is a bit short, but its late and I'm tired, and boo.

I have to tell all of you - there has been some amazing pieces of work around here lately - you all are a culmination of extremely talented people... and I thank you for updating so frequently - it really makes me okay with the fact that I am no longer a productive human being. Ever. Eh. ::shrugs::

I have a chemistry exam tomorrow. Can you say, vomit?

Anyway, this story will continue on quite soon... I hope you come back to see the rest!


	2. The Fight

Uh oh... HERE COMES SIDNEY KASAL::swoons::

I don't have much to say right at this moment - except the official dedication of this chapter goes to In The Beginning. All those swoonings are making me sick... :)

I'll talk more after. But for now... Enjoy!

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"Do you think he's going to go home any time soon?"

Sidney Kasal and Leslie Sears peeked in the window of Amy's room, focusing their eyes on her big brother. He had moved from her bedside only a handful of times in the past two days, his skin pale and drained of life due to the overwhelming emotional anguish he was being put through.

Her tiny hand sported an IV and a monitor on her index finger, which covered up one of her ten painted fingernails. He held her hand in his, stroking the side of it softly while he watched her sleep. Part of him wished that he was in her place, the disease growing inside of him instead of her – she was so young, so innocent… and much to Tyler's surprise, so brave. She would frequently ask him questions about heaven – what it was like, if she would like it, and if Mom and Dad would recognize her when she got there. Choking down the possibility that she may find out those answers soon, he told her what she wanted to know, and forced a smile as he told her that although it was the coolest place ever, she wouldn't get to see it for a long time. Losing his parents in the devastating plane crash three years ago was the most difficult thing he had ever dealt with in his life, but instead of falling apart like he wanted to, he was strong… for Amy – the only family he had left. Tyler had cried an unfeasible amount in the past two days, mostly while she was sleeping – he needed to stay positive to keep her from worrying, but he secretly prayed with each passing minute that God wouldn't take her too…he needed her. Although she was younger than him, her smile, giant heart, and bubbly personality was what gave him the strength to wake up every day, and continue on. And now…

Tyler hung his head, unknowingly being watched by the nurse and the director. Leslie's hand crept up to her mouth, covering it as tears began to roll down her face.

"Even after losing the love of my life, I can't begin to imagine what he's going through right now – and still, after everything, the moment she opens her eyes, there's a giant smile on his face…"

Sidney removed his glasses, rubbing his eyes before he set the spectacles back on the bridge of his nose. Leslie shook her head silently in agreement, wiping the few stray drops of liquid from her cheeks. She took in a big breath for composure before placing a handle on the door… the last thing Tyler needed right now was someone else to bring down the mood. She turned up the corners of her mouth slightly before casting a glance at Sidney, walking in the door, him closely behind.

Groggily, Tyler picked up his head to look at the two of them, a faint smile sweeping across his face.

"Hi, Nurse Sears, Sir…"

"Oh, Tyler…" Leslie started, letting out a small giggle. "I told you – call me Leslie…"

He moved back from his sister's bed slightly, making room for her to get by.

"I suppose you're here to check up on her again…. I just did about 15 minutes ago: Vitals are hanging at 74, BP is 101/65, Pulse is 62."

Leslie grabbed Amy's chart, scribbling down the statistics. "Okay, thank you Dr. Chase – I just need to get one more blood sample, but that's not the only reason I'm here.."

He looked at her quizzically. This had to do with the other man in the room.

"Dr. Tyler Chase, this is Sidney Kasal – the director of Caduceus USA."

Tyler stood up, extending his hand wearily. He was extremely worn out, and it showed, but he warmly greeted Sidney with a smile on his face.

"Dr. Cha---"

"Oh, Mr. Kasal, call me Tyler… no need for formalities around here…"

Sidney smiled briefly. "Same goes for you, then… no more of this Mr. Kasal stuff…" He grabbed a chair from the other side of the room, and pulled it close to Tyler.

"If its okay with you, Tyler, there are some things I'd like to discuss with you about Amy's condition…"

"No, its not a problem, go right ahead…"

Leslie carried the vial of freshly drawn blood out the door, closing it softly behind her.

Sidney watched as Tyler's glance turned back towards his sister, taking her hand in his once more.

"First of all, tonight you'll get to meet our senior surgeon… His name is Stephen Clarks, and he is the best there is – your sister will be in good hands. He is assigned to Amy, and to one other patient only… his presence and know-how will be the first step in treating her condition and finding a cure."

Tyler nodded, his glance still turned at Amy. Sidney paused for a moment, before beginning to explain more. Although he didn't look at him while he spoke, Tyler soaked in every word the director said. He listened as he explained what was happening to her – she was the second person to be infected with this strain of GUILT, which consisted of tumors which replicated themselves around the body – almost appearing as moving. Sidney talked to Tyler with the utmost ease – it was much easier to explain these things to a doctor, instead of trying to tell it to someone who had little to no medical background at all. Just before Sidney could tell him about his reasons for joining Caduceus, Tyler spoke, his voice full of sorrow.

"Tell me, Sidney – why is this happening?…"

"That, is something I cannot answer, for I don't know myself.."

The director shook his head before diverting his dark brown eyes to the ground. He asked himself that same question every day.

"We, have reason to believe that this infection… is, man-made, and is being released into society accordingly.."

That sentence was the only thing that took Tyler's gaze away from Amy. He shot his head to the side to look Sidney in the eye, a look of unimaginable fury in his eyes.

"But… but, how? How can something like this be happening, and be from OTHER PEOPLE? Why haven't we caught the bastards!?"

"We are getting closer to figuring this out every day, Tyler… But for now, I don't know. Its so new, that we know very little about it, except that we are doing everything in our power to stop its progression, and to help those that have already been infected.."

Tyler was beyond livid. "I talked to Dr. Stannis at Trinity – he said that the majority of the people that have been infected with this are already _DEAD_, Sidney… Dead. Its one thing if it's mother nature that takes away someone you love… but, my sister is laying here dying because of **another person**? You couldn't possibly fathom what I'd like to do to those people right now… you have NO idea…"

He took a big breath inward, trying to hold himself back from beginning to cry. His hushed outburst hadn't fallen on deaf ears – in fact, it had pierced through Sidney's heart like a spear.

"Dr. Chase…" Sidney said in a heartbroken tone of voice. "I know this is hard for you, but there's something that you should know…"

Tyler looked away from him, and back to his sister, brushing the hair out of her face.

"Those people… those, _monsters_ that are deciding whether our loved ones live or die… the people that are responsible for your sister's pain and suffering…"

He paused, almost unable to finish the sentence.

"…are the same ones that took my wife from me just one year ago."

Tyler's eyes shone with tears as they locked with Sidney's. His expression changed from furious to remorseful, as he tried to stammer out words to express his condolences…

"Sidney.. I'm, s-so sorry…" he said, a very noticeable tremble in his voice. "I… I had no, idea.."

Sidney held up a hand to stop him, speaking quickly. "Its okay – that's why I wanted to come talk to you today… it's a grueling experience, but, you're not alone… I told you that Amy is the second patient to be infected with this particular strain, Deftera…"

Tyler nodded in remembrance.

"My wife was the first, and is the reason I'm here today fighting this fight.."

He couldn't help it anymore – tears spilled down the blond surgeon's face, absolutely unable to comprehend why this was happening to them…

"Tyler, listen to me…" Sidney said, a twinge of urgency in his voice. Tyler looked at him, the weight of the world upon his shoulders. The director continued on.

"What you are embarking on, is something few people will experience in their lives. It is something that wills you every day to be strong and to stay positive, because the minute you start to lose hope is the same moment that she will too – its up to you to keep her alive until we can fix this… Believe me, it will wear you out, knock you completely on your ass... but you can't give up… You will stumble, you will fall… You will cry until you feel like there isn't a single drip of moisture left in your body. You will hate everything, everyone, and you will wish that it was you instead of her, that you could take away the pain and have it all for yourself. It will be a time of unimaginable agony and pain, a time where you will question every belief you have, a time where you will blame yourself for something you have no control over. You will stare your absolute breaking point in the face many times, and will get pushed across that point, but you will get up and keep trying because it's the only thing that will save her. Most of all, it is because of the unbreakable love you hold for that little girl that you will put up the fight of your life, like nobody else could even come close to… You will keep going when everyone else is out of ideas, because you're the only one that knows what its like to be a split second away from losing _everything_. You will have all of us here to help you, but that little girl right there… She is going to provide you with the strength you never knew you possessed, and an indomitable spirit." He extended his hand, pointing to his sleeping sister. Tyler looked at her, and realized he was right – one look at her porcelain face stirred something in him that made him ready to fight until the bloody end.

"But most of all…" he continued, his voice slightly softer. "When it's all over and we find a cure, you will have an inner strength so strong, nothing could ever come close to breaking it, ever again"

He thought over his words, spinning them in his head.

"_When we find a cure…"_

Tyler turned his attention back to Sidney, determination set in his eyes, as he mentally prepared himself for the fight of his life. Time had run out for Sidney, but Tyler's clock was just beginning.

"Thank you, Sidney… I have no idea what I'm in for just yet, but I can promise that nothing will stop me from saving Amy. Nothing."

Sidney smirked, pushing his glasses up the bridge of his nose.

"That's what I thought you'd say… Believe me, Tyler, nobody knows this fight like I do… you have my full support. Anything that arises, anything on your mind, anything you need to talk about – please don't hesitate to find me… my door's always open."

Tyler stood, locking eyes with Sidney.

"We'll stop this, Sidney. For your wife, for my sister, and for anyone else who may befall the same fate. I make you that promise right here and right now, if you promise to help me save her."

Sidney smiled. "That promise depends on one thing, Dr. Chase…"

Tyler's look turned slightly confused as he stared at the director – Sidney didn't look like the type to back down from a challenge, and this time would be no exception. Instead, the director posed a challenge of his own.

"Name it, and you've got it, Sidney.."

Sidney outstretched his hand, the same bold, determined smile on his face. Tyler took his hand and shook it firmly, their agreement cemented...

"Welcome to Caduceus, Dr. Chase…"

* * *

Wow -

This is very unlike my usual style of writing, I feel -- maybe its because I've never really written something like this before??

...the closest I came was cracking Victor in the jaw with a club XD.

I would love to hear feedback, as this is uncharted territory in my writing - its hard to write such sad things without getting myself all depressed. I hope you liked this chapter as much as I liked reading it...

:Sigh: Oh well - if pain is what fuels you to fight, then pain it is. Poor Tyler and Sidney :(

See you next time!


	3. Fading Fast

Okay people, more backstory here.. this time...

Featuring Dr. Stephen Clarks!

WHY IS THERE NOT MORE STEPHEN CLARKS IN THIS GAME?!

The above statement is a question I asked myself when this took forever for me to write.

* * *

Two years came and went, and Amy was holding strong. Tyler adjusted very quickly to Caduceus, and made many new friendships with his coworkers. He liked the idea of being so close to Amy even while at work, but hated the looks of sympathy surrounding him every time he went to check on her 

She was holding up well, thanks mostly to the help of Dr. Clarks. Tyler loved to watch him work – he was a fairly reserved man, which made his genius mind very frequently underestimated. He never boasted about his intelligence, or really ever talked about himself. When Tyler would ask him about his family, or his life, he would smile and give some information before cutting off, focusing on how he and Amy were doing.

In the two years she had been hospitalized, Caduceus's R&D team had developed many serums and medication for her and the other GUILT patients, but failed to come up with an ultimate cure. Amy had undergone three major surgeries at Dr. Clarks's hand, but all he could do for her was to thin out some of the tumors, which ended up growing back in a very short amount of time. It was an agreement between the staff at Caduceus that all the serums that could help had been made, and the next and final step to eradicating the GUILT was surgical intervention. Tyler frequently saw Dr. Clarks in his office studying, piles of books and research files scattered around, looking for something – anything, that would help him be able to do this.

One night, Tyler saw Dr. Clarks in his office, a giant medical disease book opened in his lap, and knocked on the open door.

"Dr. Clarks – is there anything I can help with?"

Stephen Clarks looked up and smiled. "Always, Tyler…" He picked the book up off of his lap and extended it to the young surgeon, turning his attention to some published works he had found on the internet. Tyler exited the room, taking the book back to his own office, before he began flipping through pages. He stopped on a page that was all too familiar to him. He traced the bold-faced heading with his fingers, before his memory crowded his conscious thought – sending him back to a state of reminiscing.

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"_Professor Bonca – are you absolutely sure this is what you want me to do?"_

"_Tyler… I've lived and done everything I wanted to do here on this earth… All I have left to look forward to is pain. Pain, and suffering… I don't want my wife and kids to have to see me go through that – it would be too hard for them to watch me slip away every day, rather than just wake up and have me be gone.."_

_Although Tyler understood where he was coming from, he didn't see it the same way..._

_The IV had been attached – now all he was waiting for was the liquid to start trickling in. Tears welled up in Tyler's eyes, as he spoke to his mentor one last time._

"_Goodbye, Professor Bonca – thank you for being my inspiration…"_

"_Goodbye Tyler – I know this must be difficult, but thank you for this gift… Just promise me, after I'm gone – you'll continue to work towards being the most amazing surgeon you can be… Make me proud, because I know you will.. You have the intelligence and the gifts, Tyler - I believe in you."_

_Tyler nodded once more before taking the Professor's IV'd hand in his. He picked up the first of three syringes, and poked its needle into the tubing connected to the greatest man he had ever known. He waited as the anesthesia took effect, before administering the Pavulon to induce breathing paralysis… and shortly after that, he pushed the remnants of his syringe full of Potassium Chloride through the tube, watching as the last of the liquid disappeared into the professor's body. The final dose would induce cardiac arrest, and it would be all over, forever. As he watched him take his last breath, Tyler let a single tear run down his cheek… wishing slightly that he hadn't have granted the professor's request. He removed the IV from his hand, and grabbed his supplies before removing himself from the professor's bedroom. Just before leaving, he whispered goodbye to him, before closing the door, leaving the room in darkness._

_After he rebounded from the guilt of the first person, there was another patient by the name of MaryAnn Schimpke – a GUILT victim who was sent home from Caduceus to enjoy her last days in peace. He willed himself to give in to her final request. Her family stood around her, crying and holding each other, as they watched Tyler send her off peacefully in her bed. It was bittersweet. She was dead, but he had saved her from weeks of pain._

As his eyes unglazed themselves from their flashback state, suddenly aware of his surroundings.

He stared over at a picture of him and his sister on the corner of his desk, before his mind raced back to the other day, when he had come so close to losing her.

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"_AMY, sweetheart… stay with me, come on!"_

_Tyler and Leslie moved in a panic as they watched her slip out of consciousness, and looked in horror to see the heart monitor flatline._

"_NO! LESLIE, get the paddles!"_

_She darted over to the other side of the room, wheeling the machine over to the girl's bedside. Tears flowed down her face as she watched Tyler panic, ripping open her pajama top and charging the paddles, before placing them on her tiny chest._

"_CLEAR!" he yelled, before shocking her. The line stayed flat, mocking his efforts. This couldn't be happening – not now, they were so close.._

"_CLEAR!"_

_Nothing._

"_DAMMIT, charge it again!! CLEAR!"_

_The shock brought her heart back to life, but failed to rouse her from her unconscious state._

_Tyler stood livid, his hands on his hips before he threw the machine into the wall, producing a light shriek from Leslie. He stormed from the room, throwing open the door with a loud bang, before walking out the doors of Caduceus and driving home._

_When he got there, he rummaged feverishly through his closet, before pulling out a small metal box. Inside were three half-full containers, and a bag of syringes. He pulled liquid from each container into three separate syringes, before capping them off and throwing them into his bag. _

"_If she isn't going to make it – if I'm going to have to fight that hard to keep her from slipping away, I'm just going to do it myself..._

Tyler returned once again from daydream land, and opened his bottom desk drawer, where a small case was holding those syringes. The answer to GUILT wasn't in these books, these websites, or in these people… the answer to this specific problem lied right there in that case.

He grabbed it, and walked down the hallway slowly before entering Amy's room. Taking a seat on her bed, he held her tiny hand in his, speaking to her softly.

"What I'm doing – I do because I love you… not because I don't want you here, or because I'm giving up… I do it, because you don't deserve a life like this."

Tears spilled from his face as he continued.

"I love you so much sweetheart – thank you for being so brave, and say hi to Mommy and Daddy for me…"

He reached for the case, but before he could open it, the door opened, a familiar voice resounding through the air.

"Tyler, are, you okay?"

Tyler pulled himself together, but not before Dr. Clarks saw the tears in his eyes.

"Oh, yeah" he said, laughing. "I'm fine – just, a little overwhelmed, is all…" He covered up the case quickly with Amy's blanket.

"I understand completely. You're a very brave man, Dr. Chase – I wish there was something I could do… but I have a feeling this may help."

Dr. Clarks walked over to where Tyler was seated, and sat down in a chair near him. He outstretched his hand towards Tyler, a piece of paper in it.

"You, may want to read this…"

It was a memo from Sidney which said the following.

_Dear Caduceus Staff:_

_We have reports of a __successful__ GUILT related surgery from a surgeon working at Hope Hospital in Angeles Bay. After a recommendation from his supervisor, he and his assistant nurse will be transferred here, effective tomorrow, to begin working with us in the surgical treatment of our GUILT patients. I hope you all give a warm welcome to Dr. Stiles and Nurse Thompson, and allow them to work by your sides in our fight against GUILT._

_Cordially,_

_Sidney Kasal_

_Director – Caduceus USA_

_PS: Victor, this means don't be a jerk._

Tyler was stunned by the message, but couldn't help but laugh at the special shout-out to Victor at the end.

"Wow – I never thought I would see something like this… What do you think, Dr. Clarks?"

He leaned back in his chair, a smile on his lips, but slightly pained look in his eyes. "It's the best news we've heard yet, Tyler – there's hope for your sister…"

Hope. The word cut through Tyler like a knife, as he thought of how close he came to just killing his little sister.

Tyler looked him in the eyes, seeing right through his sentence. Yes, there was hope that would be provided by this miracle doctor, but he wasn't the one who was fighting these past two years – he wasn't the one giving up time with his family to pull all nighters looking for a cure… and now, he was just going to swoop in and step in front of Dr. Clarks – the single nicest man Tyler had ever known in his life.

"Dr. Clarks – believe me… I want Amy to be okay, and if this guy has that ability, then that's great – but I still want you to be the one that does the operation… you've put so much into this, and I can't… I won't let you give up because of someone else."

His face grew more serious, but was still soft as ever.

"I understand what you're saying Tyler, but things like this are the inevitable truth. There are plenty of people who still look to me for answers, and it hurts when I don't have them to give… Being a doctor is all about caring about the final outcome, not being upset because you didn't make it happen…"

A chill went through Tyler's spine as he continued.

"Yes, I know that this time I couldn't find the answer – but that doesn't make me feel worthless by any means… I still have people that look to me as a source of inspiration every day, and that's enough for me to carry a world of pride on my shoulders."

"But, Dr. Clarks – please… don't sell yourself short at all. You have been the one I've looked up to all this time… you're one of the only one who has been by my side refusing to give up… you can do this, I know you can…"

"Sometimes, we may not be able to be the ones in the spotlight, the ones who ultimately saved them... but what matters most is that they were given the gift of another day. That's **ALL**, that matters… We kept her alive this whole time, and now it's up to Dr. Stiles to finish the job… It doesn't make a difference who does it – all that matters is that Amy will be cured… and I know that's all you care about."

Tyler looked at Dr. Clarks, his eyes full of surprise at what an incredibly selfless human being he was. Trinity Hospital was a place full of people who prided themselves on their own achievements, not the group effort, and certainly not the fact that the patient was okay… It was a nice change of pace to see someone that's only concern was the patient, and their family.

"Dr. Clarks – I'll never forget what you've done for my sister and I… You were the reason that she's alive today, and I'll never be able to repay you. I just.. I hope you know, how much respect and admiration I have for you – you're a remarkable person, and please don't ever forget it…"

A faint blush swept the doctor's cheeks as he smiled.

"You'll never know how much I appreciate what you just said, Tyler… thank you."

He stood up and exited the room, a smile on his face.

Tyler looked back at Amy before he took the case, and threw it in the garbage, Sidney's words flashing through his mind.

_"You have to be strong and to stay positive, because the minute you start to lose hope is the same moment that she will too – its up to you to keep her alive until we can fix this.. we will fix this..."_

"Just a little longer, Amy - I promise."

* * *

Phew! 

Okay, so I thought this chapter was pointless, but I really wanted a Dr. Clarks chapter... gotta run for now, leave me some feeeeeedback!


	4. Ticking Away

A bit of a short chapter, just to get updating here - I'm really falling behind on all this stuff now that I'm friggin sick :(

Long story short - I was really too lazy to even think about trying to write the operation scene tonight. So, meh. Sorry :) Soon - I promise! (as soon as I stop barfing everywhere... geh)

Yeah, i'm really lazy - and it shows.. I kinda took a lot of shortcuts here, just to get something up before I posted the operation scene. So sue me.

Please don't sue me... I'm really poor :( haha.

WILL SOMEBODY PLEASE SHUT ME UP?! SERIOUSLY!

* * *

Tyler stepped through the front doors of Caduceus, knowing today was the day he was going to come face to face with this "Miracle Doctor" who was supposedly going to save his little sister. Each step he took he thought about how he almost ended her life the night before. Remorse tangled with regret as he wondered if he really should've gone through it – would it be worth it to get his hopes up for another failed attempt at a cure? One thing was for certain, and that was he had come way too close to Dr. Clarks finding out his plan. If he did decide against it later, he knew he had to be more careful.

Tyler stepped into Amy's room to see her unconscious form lying in bed. She had only woken up a few times since she had coded the last time, weakened from all that her body was put through every day. As he sat by her bedside and stroked her face, he made a decision that would change both of their lives forever. Late the next night when the hospital had slowed to snail's pace, he would send her off before the new doctor was allowed to touch her, to hurt her… to fail. She had gone through enough already - it was time for her to find peace.

Hours and hours full of rounds and checking on Amy went by, each passing by more slowly than its predecessor. The moon shone inside the halls as he walked back to his office solemnly, before stopping to answer his cell phone.

"Yeah, this is Chase… Oh hey Zack, what's up?"

Zack was a friend of Tyler's from med school – the only one who knew his deep dark secret about the gift he had given their favorite professor, and the person who he had passed along his knowledge of euthanasia to. He was preparing to send a friend of his off who had been battling Leukemia for years – but called to make sure that everything he had to do was set.

"Yeah, if you increase the sedative, then you can administer the potassium chloride… and… Oh, man, I gotta call you back…"

While he had been on the phone, a man and a woman had been chatting, sitting next to each other as they filled out paperwork. Tyler hadn't noticed them until he spun around, looking directly into the face of one of his best friends from medical school – Derek Stiles.

"Derek?!" he asked, his trademark grin creeping back onto his face.

"Tyler? Is that you?!" the doctor replied, rising from his seat. The blonde he had been chatting with sat in her place, watching, slightly confused.

"No way, you work here now? I heard them say the new guy's name was Stiles, but man.. this rocks!"

Derek smiled and shook his hand. "Oh, I'm sorry, I almost forgot…" he said, turning around towards the girl. "Angie, this is Tyler Chase – a friend of mine fr--"

"…from med school – I got it, Derek.." she said as she rose to her feet.

"May I say it's a pleasure to meet your gorgeous assistant…" Tyler said smiling, watching as a blush made its way onto her face. Derek laughed, nodding.

"Nice to meet you – my name's Angie Thompson…"

"Well anyway – I've gotta run, but it was great seeing you again, and it was nice to meet you Angie… I guess I'll see you at work tomorrow!" he said, grinning.

As Tyler walked around the corner and out of sight, the smile faded from his face as he came crashing back to reality. Less than 24 hours, and there would be no GUILT patient for Derek to operate on – she would be gone.

The next morning, Tyler bore witness to Derek's surgical ability as he watched him operate successfully on Jack Reyes, a patient who had been infected with Kyriaki a year and a half ago. He really could do it – he could really operate against GUILT… even though when he finished the operation, vitals were lingering around 10. It was too close for Tyler's comfort – especially because Derek had only operated on the Kyriaki strain – not the strain his sister had, which tests had shown was much more severe. He wasn't convinced that this was going to help at all, his previous plan of sending Amy off himself still intact. Seven hours was all that stood between Tyler and his target time – his emotions running wild.

An hour and a half after he had finished his first surgery at Caduceus, Derek wandered into the break room looking for his old friend, a question on his mind. As he entered the room he found it void of any other people, but a stack of papers on the corner of the table pulled his attention away from what he had been looking for before. He immediately recognized Tyler's handwriting, as he read the headings, his heart skipping a beat as he saw the word "Euthanasia" as one of the titles.

"Why would Tyler keep a euthanasia file..?" he asked quietly, before a panic set in. Tyler was just outside, talking to another person, but coming this way.

Derek froze for a second, before stuffing the papers back into their rightful place, and spinning around and away from the stack right as Tyler entered the room.

"Hey Derek – what's going on?" he asked, smiling.

"Oh nothing, I just came to check on --- um, medication! For the GUILT patients!" he replied, sheepishly rubbing the back of his head.

"Oh, well, as far as I know, there hasn't been any post-op medication yet…"

He sighed.

"Oh, okay, well I'll just get going then! See ya!" Derek said, nervously trying to exit the room.

"Wait." Tyler said, the smile leaving his face. "There's – something I need to tell you… you would've found out about it soon enough anyway… follow me."

--------------------------------------------------------------

"Derek, this is my sister Amy – she's been hospitalized here for two years…"

Derek shook hands with the young girl and her nurse Leslie, chatting with everyone for a little while before Tyler pulled him back outside to talk.

"Listen – I know you saw those files I had… and yes, its true – I've been practicing Euthanasia, its my deep dark secret…" Tyler said, hanging his head.

"You mean, you're the death doctor? But – why?"

Tyler relived his past once more, telling Derek the story of Professor Bonca. He watched as his eyes widened – he was a favorite professor of Derek's as well, and Tyler could see the anger flashing through his eyes. That same anger unleashed itself as the two surgeons got into a very heated debate, arguing in very hushed tones.

"Listen – call it what you want, but if you're going to turn me in, at least wait till I send Amy off tonight – okay?" he asked, full well knowing the answer to the question.

Derek muttered one last thing as he turned and left, leaving Tyler to remorsefully watch him walk away. Only five more hours stood between him and his plan.

------------------------------------------------------------

Lost in thought, Tyler sat in the break room, pretending to watch TV. Really, he just didn't want to converse with Derek who was getting coffee for he and Angie at the moment – but a lot of things were on his mind. Dr. Clarks sat nearby, wondering to himself why the two weren't talking, but that disappeared from his mind as Leslie suddenly ran into the room in a panic.

"Tyler – come quick, its Amy – her vitals are dropping and she's losing consciousness again…"

Dr. Clarks ran from the room with Leslie on his heels, radioing through the hospital that they were preparing for yet another surgery.

Although the urgency of the situation was clear in Tyler's head, he found himself cemented in place. It really was coming down to this moment – right here. Either she would pull through this little attack and he could settle the situation later, or Derek was going to try to operate on her, and she was going to die at his hands. Derek's gaze shot over to Tyler as he watched him stand in place, his eyes holding as look as if to say, _"why are you just standing there, let's go!"_ But Derek quickly realized that Tyler wasn't going to move from that spot.

"Tyler – what are you doing.. Let's GO!" he snapped.

"She can't be saved, Derek… This is it. The GUILT's already migrating…"

Derek's tone rose to a yell as he began to lose his patience with his friend. "So, that's it?! You're just going to sit her and watch her die?!"

He was promptly cut off by Tyler, who, amazingly, was still holding his cool.

"… do you have any idea how many things we've tried!? Dr. Clarks couldn't help her, and he's the best there is! Amy… doesn't have a lot of time left. That's why we're going to leave her alone so she doesn't have to suffer."

"I'm not going to stand by and watch as GUILT tears her apart! Its not going to happen!" Derek's voice was unrelenting as he barked in Tyler's face.

"Listen – cutting her open over and over again isn't going to do anything, she'll just suffer more. And if that's the case, I'd rather send her off myself…"

A chill raced through Derek's spine at the thought of him killing that little girl. He paced towards Tyler slowly, fire blazing in his brown eyes.

"If you so much as go near that girl with that intention, I swear..."

"You'll what?" Tyler replied, curious to see what Derek's next move was going to be. "There's nothing you can do - I want her to stop suffering, and surgery after surgery isn't going to accomplish that... putting an end to that pain, however, is what's going to do the trick... and there's nothing you can do Derek - you're powerless to stop this."

"I can't believe what I'm hearing... You call yourself a doctor?" he said, his voice calm once more, but full of disgust.

Now it was Tyler's turn to yell, his impatience getting the better of him. "I'm Amy's BROTHER before I'm a doctor! I'm not going to watch her suffer because that's my job!!"

Stalemate. Air that was once clouded with angry screams was now silent, both men out of things to say.

Angie burst in the room as the two men stood in silence.

"What are you two still doing here?! Hurry UP!"

She exited from the room, leaving them still standing there.

"If you're not going to do anything about this, then I will…" Derek said, the disgust still dripping from his every word. And like that, he turned and ran from the room. Reluctantly, Tyler followed, chasing to make sure that bastard didn't lay a finger on his little sister. He didn't care if the whole world heard his intentions... Amy wasn't going to die -- at least, not like that.

* * *

I thought instead of copying everything straight from the game, that I would like it better if I made up some of my own conversations and ways that this stuff happened. So, before you start in and say "That's not how that happened!" I already know... its a part of writing and being creative - I get to do what I want! Yay!

Besides, it could've been worse - I could've had a bomb drop on Caduceus at that very moment, leaving the situation null and void anyway.. Ok, don't freak out about that either, i swear I won't bomb anyone (that's a promise).

I'm way sick and way tired - this would explain all the ramblings... gah, this sucks :(

Anyway - surgery chapter is up next - i hope you all liked this!


	5. Neverending Struggle

I'm so glad I finally was able to finish this.. I don't know how to describe it -- I just, quite literally, didn't feel like it. Eh. ::shrugs:: Oh well.

Anyway, I'm going to start this off with a little disclaimer. Everyone knows how happy-go-lucky Tyler is through the whole game, minus the like, 3 seconds he's yelling at Derek, so this chapter may make him seem OOC. Basically, this is my take on what it would be like had the situation with Amy escalated further. Remember, Tyler's real pissed and emotionally drained, so, here's him flipping out a bit! Enjoy!

* * *

"Derek, we…may not, be able to operate…" 

Dr. Clarks spoke with a very uneven tone, almost unable to believe the words that were coming from his mouth.

"Dr. Clarks, what do you mean we can't operate, we have to!" Derek replied. He understood the urgency of the problem, but his thoughts were more focused on what Tyler was going to do if he had a chance alone with Amy.

"The GUILT has migrated faster than we expected – it's in her stomach, and has already made its way to her lungs." he replied, still trying to figure out a solution.

"What if we separate the operation into two parts?"

"No good – if we don't extract it all, we'll be right back where we started…"

"You see, Derek?" Tyler started in, much to Derek's dismay. "This is how it always works – I knew it would end up with something like this."

Angie watched silently from over on the side of the room as Derek completely ignored Tyler's words. She stood listening, quizzically – there seemed to be some sort of tension between the two of them, but she just couldn't put her finger on it quite yet… Maybe it had to do with the operation – she knew they weren't mad at each other. After all, what would they possibly be mad about?

"Okay, I'll just have to extract all of it at one time then…"

Derek turned on his heel, still refusing to acknowledge Tyler, who was now getting visibly angry.

"I already told you Derek – keep your hands off of her, you bastard!"

It fell on deaf ears as the surgeon walked toward the prep room, stopping in front of the sink to scrub in.

"Dr. Clarks – have Cybil begin anesthesia. We're operating now. Angie, prep the OR."

"NO!" Tyler spat, storming over to the prep room. "I know you can hear me, Stiles… I said, NO!"

"Something's definitely wrong here…" Angie thought to herself as she rushed to get the tools ready. Leslie was over trying to calm Amy, while Cybil was preparing the anesthetic. Tyler walked over and jerked on the handle to the room where Derek was readying himself, flinging it open and causing a loud 'bang' to resound through the whole OR.

After tying on his mask, Derek stepped in front of the sink and turned the handle to the faucet. No sooner did the water come out of the faucet than he was shoved forcefully away from the sink, struggling to regain his footing to stop himself from falling. Inches away from crashing into the wall, Derek dug his shoes into the tile and held his ground, completely shocked that Tyler was doing this in front of everyone. For the first time since the conversation in the break room, Derek locked eyes with Tyler, seeing the same fury in Tyler's as in his own. He stood silent for a few seconds before looking over into the operating room – everyone had stopped what they were doing, eyes on the surgeons, waiting to see who would take the next move. It was Derek.

"You know, there are other sinks in this hospital. I don't have to use this one…" Derek sneered, placing his hands firmly on his hips.

Tyler's eyes narrowed as he began to move towards Derek once more, coming to a halt as the surgeon uttered his next phrase.

"Everyone's watching you, Tyler."

And indeed they were. All eyes were on the two of them – curious to see if the situation would further escalate.

"…and?"

"I just wanted to make sure you knew that before you made your next move – I suggest you choose it wisely."

Tyler stood motionless, hands hanging at his sides as he clenched them into fists. Never in his life had he wanted to hit someone so badly.

"I told you, Derek. This isn't going to work… nothing's, going to work. I don't want my sister to be in pain anymore. I am technically her guardian since our parents died, so you're forgetting that I do have the final say in whether this operation happens or not. And I say, you're not laying a hand on her."

Derek stopped.

"That's where you're wrong. We usually don't let people make life and death decisions when they're obviously mentally unstable."

Derek wasn't usually one to argue about things, but when he absolutely had to, he knew how to hit hard.

"In cases like that, it's the decision of the doctor on-call, and I'm going to have to say, this is one of those situations. The operation is happening, Chase. Now either you can get out of my way so I can go save your sister, or I can have you removed. I'll let you think about it while I wash up." His eyes broke their stare with Tyler's as he moved over to the sink, the water still running.

Unimaginable rage pulsed through Tyler's body as he watched Derek dispense soap onto his hands. Ten feet away and ready to close in, he balled his hands into fists once more as he spoke.

"Mentally unstable? Is that what you think this is?! MENTALLY UNSTABLE?!" Tyler yelled, despite the fact that his jaw was clenched shut.

"Someone get in there – I think this is about to get bad…" Angie blurted out. Cybil finished up what she was doing quickly and paced cautiously over to the room. She had to watch herself – something about Tyler wasn't right.

He took in a deep breath as he noticed that Derek wasn't paying attention to him – but was scrubbing his hands and forearms vigorously.

"You know what I noticed?" he asked, teeth still clenched.

No response. The only sound in the air was the water running into the metal sink and down the drain.

"I noticed that it's real hard to perform surgery after a couple nice blows TO THE FACE!"

As Tyler shouted the last of the sentence and closed the distance between he and Derek, Cybil broke out into a run, charging into the room to stop Tyler from acting irrationally. Backing away from his soon-to-be assailant, Derek watched expressionless as Cybil grabbed both of Tyler's hands and pulled them behind his back, pulling him out the door with them.

"What are you DOING? Let GO of me!"

He thrashed around but to no avail. Cybil pulled him back and over by the entry to the OR, spinning him around to face her as she slammed him up against the wall. She braced her forearm across his chest as he struggled to get free.

"Look at me, Chase." she said, a calming but angry tone in her voice.

Drying his hands, Derek looked out the window at Angie, who was looking at him with fear in her eyes. He half-smiled at her before walking out of the prep room to stand next to her as he put his gloves on, her eyes still trying to decipher where this could've possibly come from.

"It hurts, Leslie – I-I c-can't, breatheee!" Amy shrieked, grabbing at Leslie's scrubs. The nurse scooped her up in her arms as she held her, waiting to see what the hold-up was. Suddenly, Amy went limp, slipping into unconsciousness once more.

"We have to figure this out soon, Dr. Clarks…" Leslie said, an urgent tone in her voice. "She can't even stay conscious…"

After refusing for a few seconds, Tyler slowly brought his gaze up and looked at Cybil, her expression hard.

"I don't know what the hell has gotten into you…" she started, very unamused by the situation. "But you need to get your act together – that little girl is depending on this operation to stay alive, and she is going to get that operation right now. If you have a problem with that, then you need to leave now. If you don't want to do that either, I'll remove you myself. Do I make myself clear?" She snapped, still whispering.

Tyler looked over at the wall still full of absolute contempt, but nodded, still refusing to look Cybil in the face again. She backed away from him and returned to Amy's bedside, casting a bewildered look to Derek before continuing to prep the anesthesia.

"Ready to go?" Derek asked Dr. Clarks, who surprisingly shook his head to the question.

"Derek – I heard what was said in there, and as much as I hate to admit it, Tyler is right. He is her legal guardian, and if he says no, there's nothing we can do…"

Derek's eyes widened as he scoffed. "No, there's something we can do. It's called an operation…"

Tyler heard this entire conversation, and after a few paces, was back in the main part of the operating room, all of his colleagues silent, watching him. The looks varied from silent pleas to those of absolute disgust as he stood by the unconscious girl's bedside. As he took one more look at her, he turned his attention to Cybil.

"Make her comfortable, Cybil. Derek – take off the gloves. It's my decision, and I say no."

"You can't be serious!" Angie shot in, completely baffled. "This is the most ridiculous thing I've ever heard!"

"I said, no."

His tone was flat and detached, but forceful. Dr. Clarks hung his head and shook it gently, absolutely speechless.

Derek, however, wasn't giving up without a fight.

"I'm sorry – I can't accept that…"

Tyler began to get upset again. "Why are you doing this Derek? Just give it up…"

Derek stared at Tyler, his glare burning. "This is one of those moments that you have to keep fighting.. you can't just, give up."

"No.." Tyler interjected. "This is one of those moments where you realize that you've been beaten, and you throw in the towel."

Derek paused crossing his arms.

"Okay, Dr. Chase. You want it this way, you've got it…" he began, staring his colleague down with a death glare.

All eyes turned to Derek, including Tyler's. His blue eyes widened as he anticipated Derek's next move, which turned out to be the one he had been fearing most.

"Since we're not going to operate today, why don't you go ahead and tell everyone why."

Tyler growled under his breath.

"I told you already – I don't want her to suffer more. She's not strong enou--"

"No, no, no…" Derek interjected, now just trying to make Tyler pay. "Tell everyone the real reason – you know, the one you told me earlier this afternoon? That one – go ahead, tell them."

The other occupants of the room stood firmly in place, all their attention focused on Tyler, who had yet to give an explanation. In his silence, Derek spoke once again.

"Okay, fine. Then I'll tell them… Tyler was go—"

"DEREK!" Tyler snapped. "I TOLD you… it's my decision. No operation, and that's FINAL!"

He smacked his hand into the wall, producing a loud bang. Leslie shook her head, tears welling as Angie let out a small shriek, jumping towards Derek, who put an arm around her.

"Tyler…"

That voice was all Tyler needed to bring him back from an anger of a magnitude he had never experienced before. His attention shot immediately over to Amy, lying weak on the gurney, barely conscious. He stepped towards her form slowly and took her hand.

"Tyler, please… do the operation…"

A chill raced down his spine.

"I-I, wondered if you could hear us… aren't you scared?"

She cracked a weak smile, as Tyler tried to find the sparkle in her brown eyes, which sadly, was barely noticeable.

"You've worked so hard to become a good doctor… now, I just have to work hard too. It'll be okay, big brother. Derek can save me, I just know it. I.. I don't want to die, Tyler."

Leslie squeezed the girl's hand gently as she continued to talk. Amy was the only one who could talk Tyler out of this nonsense. She fought for her life with someone who wanted to end her suffering completely – and after her bright eyes and adorable smile broke down whatever was holding Tyler back, she slipped back into sleep, unable to stay awake any longer.

Stretching himself back into an upright standing position, Tyler rested his hands on his hips, staring at his baby sister once more before speaking.

"…I, wasn't even thinking about what she wanted." he said, slowly and quietly. "All I was focused on was how hard it is for me to watch her go through this…"

Knowing that he had made a world of mistakes that day, Tyler slowly lifted his head to look at Derek, who was still undeniably angry with him.

"Derek…" he said, almost inaudibly. "Please do the operation… I don't deserve to touch her… not with these hands."

He hung his head once more, brain still racing through the different emotions he was feeling. Unfortunately, Derek wasn't ready to let him off the hook yet.

"I personally believe that it's not over until it's over." Derek started, his deep voice softly billowing through the air.

"…What about you, Dr. Chase? Shouldn't we do everything it takes if it means saving a person's life?"

Tyler exhaled, knowing that only one answer was going to get Derek to do the operation.

"Yes, Dr. Stiles. We should do everything possible."

Derek disposed of his old gloves and slipped on a new pair, before walking over to the operating table, still livid about the prior situation. He let his stresses go as he spoke one last time.

"Then we'll do just that… Let's begin."

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Working in the stomach first, Derek lasered off each of the four tumors present on the stomach lining, before Angie spoke.

"Our results say that the Deftera could appear at any time… I'll keep an eye out and let you know."

"Thanks Angie"

An eerie silence filled the room, interrupted only by the beeping of life support.

"Chiral reaction is rising, here it comes!" Angie said, mildly panicked.

And come it did.

Derek looked at Amy's stomach, amazed, as the Deftera swam around the stomach, producing tumors every few seconds which he lasered off promptly. Everyone in the room watched as suddenly, the two types stopped next to each other, before combining to form one large spinning circle.

"Drain, quick!"

Angie passed Derek the drain, and as he took it from her, held it on the spinning forms of Deftera, draining their cytoplasm. He noticed that as soon as they started to swim around again, they had each lost some of the white gooey detailing on their surface, making it easier to see that one was a reddish color, the other, a blue. Still zapping tumors as they appeared, the Deftera joined again, and Derek drained the cytoplasm once more.

"They're solid red and solid blue now – all the cytoplasm is nearly gone, which means one more draining should do it. Pass me the stabilizer, Angie."

Fearful for what would happen on the third draining, Derek rose vitals to 85, waiting for the cells to have one more meeting so that he could finish this.

"This is it!" Angie yelped as the swirling mass came into view once again. "Drain it!"

Doing as he was told, Derek held the drain on the mass, taking what little cytoplasm it had left. Instead of disappearing like he had thought, the pair stalled for a quick second, before it spun around twice and formed a sphere that was twice as large and spun twice as fast.

"What… Derek, hurry – you need to cut it out!"

Grabbing frantically for the scalpel, Derek cut all around the edges of the wildly thrashing Deftera mass as it churned out tumors all around itself, causing Amy's vitals to crash. As he traced around the circle of the mass, the blade was brought back to its starting point, which caused the mass to turn a dull shade of black, signifying its death.

"Forceps"

Gently, Derek lifted the mass out of the newly created crater in Amy's stomach, before putting it on a tray that Angie held out for him. In the other tray she had was a membrane, which he placed on top of the gaping hole, gelling it to help it mix in.

"Laser"

Derek lasered each of the tumors created by the unexpected thrashing until none remained. As he took a deep sigh of relief, he reached for the sutures, and began to close up the first wound.

A single tear made its way down Tyler's cheek as he watched. Derek was saving his little sister – the GUILT inside her was half gone thanks to him… Thanks to the man he had screamed at, pushed, and almost punched. Ashamed at himself, he wiped the tear off of his cheek just as he felt a hand wrap around his waist. Turning to his right he saw Leslie leaning on his arm, squeezing it gently to comfort him. He wrapped an arm around her shoulders, his other hand still resting over his mouth, before he moved that one too to talk.

"Its, a miracle… Derek, please – you're halfway there… Just, please – save my little sister…"

Letting the words roll right off his back, Derek and Angie continued to operate on Amy, this time smearing antibiotic gel on her chest. In a split second, Derek has slit open the girl's skin, revealing the contents of her lungs.

"Oh, my…" Angie trailed as she looked at the Deftera. Instead of one pair, there were two – and as Angie immediately noticed, they didn't pair up the right way every single time.

The two red Deftera spun into one another and immediately formed three tumors, much to everyone's amazement.

"Laser"

Derek lasered the tumors right away, including the other stray ones left while the other Deftera had been swimming around. He and Angie watched intently as they waited for the right pairs to match up. Drain in hand, Derek quickly snapped into action as both pairs spun together at the same time, draining both of them in a flash. They rebounded from this draining and spun together once more, Derek draining the two masses again.

"Oh, no… stabilizer, laser, drain…"

Angie grabbed all three tools quickly in her hands and held them out for Derek, who used them at different intervals. The two red and the two blue Deftera had each matched up twice, leaving a giant cluster of nine tumors to be taken care of, which were quickly spawning small ones all around them. Angie watched as he injected the syringe full of stabilizer into Amy, the vitals barely raising.

"There's too big of a concentration of tumors – vitals are dropping faster than you can raise them, Derek…" Angie stated nervously as she watched the monitor.

Suddenly, the blue and red Deftera spun together one last time, as Derek took the opportunity to drain them.

"Derek, no!"

It was too late. The spinning mass twirled twice as fast and grew giant now, producing tumors faster than lightning as it thrashed out of control.

"Dammit! Come on!" Derek shouted, working furiously to cut the mass out and keep vitals up. After he cut the mass out, he injected a shot full of stabilizer, lifted the dead Deftera out with the forceps and placed a membrane over it, and injected more stabilizer. Now the tumors had all but covered the entire organ, sending vitals in a downward spiral, while the remaining pair continued to deposit more.

"Vitals are plummeting!" Angie barked. "You have to get rid of the tumors, NOW!"

Tyler started to shake as he watched his baby sister's vital stability decline at a frightening rate, dropping from 50 to 40 in a matter of seconds. He was right – Derek really was going to kill his little sister…

But before he could open his mouth to say anything he watched as Derek stopped completely, before beginning to work at what seemed like a superhuman pace. He let out a small gasp as he whispered, _"The Healing Touch…"_ out loud, absolutely speechless at the phenomenon. Derek hadn't used it during the Kyriaki operation at Caduceus, so this was the first time Tyler had bore witness to the amazing ability.

In what seemed like a flash, Derek had lasered away all of the tumors, placed antibiotic gel over the membrane to help it blend into the lining of the lungs, and had raised vitals from 23 to 90, while waiting patiently for the Deftera to join together for the last time. Mere seconds later, Derek jumped into action once more, draining, cutting, and removing the last of the GUILT in Amy's body.

As the gentle "plunk" of the Deftera being dropped into the metal pan resounded through the air, Tyler couldn't help but to start to cry. He really had done it – Derek had saved his sister's life, despite how big of a jerk he had been to him. Tyler watched as he sutured up the incision and placed a bandage on it – after two long arduous years, this nightmare was finally over. Forever.

As Derek turned around he came face to face with Tyler. Still silent, he walked past him on his way to get cleaned up as he walked after him, trying to apologize.

"Derek? Derek, wait a second…"

The surgeon kept walking, peeling off his gloves and coverings on the way.

"Derek… please, wait.."

Still no response. Tyler began to grow upset and it showed in his voice.

"Derek!" he said once more, his voice trying to hold back tears. The tone had finally gotten Derek to stop and turn around, but still hadn't made him talk to or even look at Tyler. He closed the door to the prep room, leaving the two of them alone to talk.

"Derek – I, can't tell you…how sorry I am for everything I've done since you've been here. I doubted you, and I shouldn't have – my sister is going to live because of you… and, I… I can't thank you enough."

Derek lifted his head up and looked at Tyler who was absolutely beside himself.

"Listen." he started as a surprised look grew on Tyler's face. He was actually talking to him again.

"I don't know what it's like to be in your shoes, but I do know, that no matter how dire something gets, _taking it into your own hands_… is never the answer. Ever."

"I know, dude… I kn-"

"No." Derek interjected calmly. "You don't know… I.. I just hate to think what would've happened if I would've come to Caduceus any later than I had… I used to respect you so much, Tyler… and now.."

"Derek…" Tyler paced a step forward, clasping his hands together. "I'll do anything… _anything_ you want, to make up for what you did for my sister and I here today. If you want to turn me in, that's fine… just, please. I want your respect, and I want your forgiveness. I'll even do your paperwork for the rest of your life man, please? Anything!"

Derek couldn't help but laugh a little at the notion of him just unloading his paperwork on Tyler all the time – it sounded so, wonderful, to him.

"I'm not going to turn you in…" he started, much to Tyler's relief.

"Then what, man.. tell me what I can do…"

Derek paused.

"Alright, everything will go back to normal if you promise me three things."

"Anything, Derek… you name it"

Derek smiled.

"First of all, and I think this goes without saying. No, more, euthanasia. Ever, again."

Tyler nodded. "I'm way ahead of you man, done."

"Second – I want you to re-edit that thesis you wrote, and offer it to Caduceus."

Tyler's eyes sprung wide open in shock. "What do you… are you feeling okay, Derek? What are you talking about?"

He half-smiled. "Regardless of the way it was used Tyler, you have a brilliant mind when it comes to writing papers and performing research – I want you to re-edit that thesis, and use it to save people's lives… not end them."

Tyler was stunned. He was for sure that after the timeline of the last two days, that Derek would've sold him down the river the minute Amy was cured, but here he was, helping him to pick himself back up again.

"Done, Derek… absolutely. Thank you so much…"

Derek outstretched his hand, which Tyler looked at before grabbing. Tyler reached his other hand over and patted Derek on the shoulder, trying to hold back his tears again.

"I can never repay you, for what you did here today man… but, I promise to stop using the coward's way out…"

Derek smiled a full smile this time.

"That's all I ask… that, and take good care of Amy…"

Tyler returned the smile, before a look of confusion washed over his face.

"Oh yeah, didn't you have a third thing you wanted from me?" he asked, watching as Derek's grin turned evil.

"Oh, that's right – I forgot. You're so doing my paperwork for a week… I couldn't pass that up for anything."

Tyler laughed.

"You got it dude."

----------------------------------------------------------------

Hours after the operation, Leslie walked into the break room, where Tyler was sitting on the couch, the TV off. She gently sat down next to him and noticed that he was sleeping, before she rubbed his arm softly to wake him.

"Mmmph…" he grumbled before turning towards the nurse, opening his eyes. "Oh, hey Leslie…Leslie!"

He shot upright, panic on his face.

"Is, she alright? Did she wake up? Is everything okay?"

"Calm, Tyler…" Leslie said soothingly. "I just came to tell you that Amy is going to be up very soon, and wanted to know if you wanted me to take you to her room."

He stared at Leslie, who watched him with concern on her face.

"Yeah, Leslie – I'd like that a lot…" he replied, repositioning himself on the couch.

"Okay.. but… before we go… um, there was… uh, something, I wanted to ask you…" she stammered.

He looked at her. "What's up?"

"What…. happened, to you today?" she started, watching as the look on Tyler's face grew rigid, but she pressed on. "You and Derek, you… almost…"

She stopped, putting the point across bluntly.

"I'm worried about you, Tyler… For the past two years I've known you, you've been the happiest guy I've ever known, always in a good mood… I never thought you were capable of some of the things you did today.."

He nodded before opening his mouth to speak.

"I know, and I'm really ashamed at everything I did do… As for Derek and I, we just – I was losing it and took it out on him for trying to help me…"

"I understand…" she started. "I don't know what its like to go through something so devastating, so, I have no idea how much pain you must've been carrying…"

He chuckled gently. "It, was a lot.. but thanks to you all, this nightmare is over."

She smiled, standing up and extending her hand out to help him up.

"You're right…" she said, still smiling. "It's all over – let's go see her."

She pulled him towards the door before he stopped, forcing her to spin around. Looking at him quizzically, he stepped towards her gently.

"Thank you, Leslie – for being there for us through this whole thing… I, couldn't have done it without you…"

A smile swept across her face once more as he pulled her into a giant hug. Leslie felt her face grew red as the man she had harbored a secret crush on since the day he started at Caduceus held her, firmly but gently. She rested her head on his chest for a brief moment before she pulled away, her cheeks still red.

"Oh, Tyler – all bad things aside, I've enjoyed getting to know the two of you so much these past two years… I just… I hope we can, um… continue that… You know? I've really loved the time I've spent with you.."

"_Shut up Leslie" She said mentally to herself – " You're horrible at hiding this stuff.."_

Surprised, he looked at her, the nurse for which he had been falling. Could this be what he thought it was? Did she feel the same way?

"Ah, so, you really wanted to spend time with me… I knew you had a secret agenda…" he said, smirking. Tyler always had a habit of making fun of girls he liked, instead of just telling them that he liked them.

She giggled. "Yeah, I guess you caught me… Oh well." Leslie shrugged her shoulders as she began to pull him out the door, but was stopped once more when he refused to move. As she spun around, Tyler pulled her closer to him and wrapped his hands around her waist. He briefly looked her in her sparkling eyes before planting a soft kiss on her lips, sending a giant chill through her entire body.

Outside in the hallway, Sidney Kasal walked by, spotting the two sharing a much-anticipated moment together. He chuckled and shook his head as he walked on.

"Ah, the wonders of hormones…" he muttered.

As they pulled apart, Leslie smiled, her face still cradled in Tyler's hands.

"Hmm.." she said softly. "Let me guess… that was your secret agenda?"

"You caught me…" he said, smiling proudly. "Oh, and, we can go now…"

Leslie smiled as she grabbed Tyler's hand, lacing her fingers with his as she walked by his side down the hallway to Amy's room. On the way there they passed Derek in the hall, who sent an inquisitive glance towards their linked hands before looking at Tyler.

Tyler smiled warmly at his friend before speaking. "Thanks again, man.." he said, extending his hand once more.

Derek grasped his hand tightly, and in that moment, Tyler's mind was put at ease. Hours before, he had no control of either his or Amy's lives, watching them both hang in the balance as the awful disease ripped her apart. But thanks to the fact that Derek hadn't let him give up when he had wanted to the most, he and Amy had a long, bright future to look forward to. One that also hopefully included Leslie.

* * *

Yay! FINALLY DONE.

Yes it turned briefly to romance at the end. So sue me.

Speaking of romance, now, onto finish my Derek and Angie fic -- hope to see you all there!

-TCGeek

PS: Feel free to throw out any ideas for a bonus chapter, if there are any!


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